MSPwiz Debuts an AI Tool to Pair SMBs With the Right MSPs

Helping businesses find just the right managed service providers (MSPs) to keep their critical IT operations working efficiently is the goal of a new SaaS service from startup MSPwiz. The company, which calls itself an MSP “matchmaker,” was started by CEO and founder Kevin Anderson, a veteran of 20 years in the industry and the former owner of an MSP business.

Finding just the right managed service providers (MSPs) to help businesses keep their critical IT operations working efficiently can be a tough task for business owners because they often do not know how to take on the process, Anderson told ChannelE2E.

“My whole goal here is to ensure MSPs are being matched with the right businesses, and that the businesses are matching with the right MSPs based on a series of assessments” conducted by MSPwiz, he said.

To do this, the MSPwiz SaaS platform uses process automation and AI from a proprietary large language model (LLM) that securely scales and streamlines the search onboarding process based on detailed interviews completed with the businesses seeking MSPs.

To start the process, businesses must create an account and sign up. They gain access to the assessment questions only after they have spoken with a human MSPwiz account representative about their needs. The human experts conduct additional rigorous one-on-one interviews to aid the process. After completing the detailed questionnaires, the platform matches the business to three recommendations of qualified MSPs that can help them.

MSPs that join the company’s database of available MSPs also complete the surveys and provide their detailed information on their services and skills.

Businesses seeking outsourced IT services and MSPs can be listed on MSPwiz at no cost. If an MSP signs a deal for services with a business, the MSP pays a commission to MSPwiz based on the amount of the work contract.

As MSPwiz Launches, However, Fewer Than 100 MSPs Have Joined the Effort

So far, though, MSPwiz has fewer than 100 MSPs signed up in its database to match up with SMBs that are seeking needed services from what Anderson said are an estimated 40,000 MSPs across the U.S. It is a problem that Anderson admits is an ongoing challenge.

“Our focus is to really grow that database,” since launching the company recently, he said. “We have already done some deals with businesses that are using our platform, even though we do not have thousands of MSPs on there. We are able to match them up with who is already on the platform.”

Several Other Services Already Filling This Niche

While MSPwiz is a newcomer to matching SMBs and MSPs in working relationships, similar services are already providing MSP matching services to SMBs across the U.S. marketplace. They include MSP Chooser and the Managed Service Providers Association of America, which are each designed to help businesses find and connect with qualified MSPs in their areas.     

Analyst: Better Matching of SMBs and MSPs Is a True Need and Challenge

Anurag Agrawal, the chief global analyst and founder of Techaisle, told ChannelE2E that he agrees that finding the right MSPs can be a significant challenge for SMBs.

“The problem MSPwiz is tackling is not just real, but it is a quantifiable and persistent friction point in the channel,” said Agrawal. “Our research at Techaisle shows this is a critical pain point for small- and mid-market businesses.”

For many SMBs, their method of finding MSPs today is to “Google it and pray” that they make the right choice, he said. Many SMBs struggle with evaluating MSPs and their proposals, but often lack the deep technical expertise needed to conduct adequate evaluations and selections, said Agrawal. “This creates anxiety and leads to poor decision-making.”

Similar issues crop up for MSPs as well because finding new customers can be challenging for them, he said.

For MSPwiz, however, “the single greatest barrier to success here is that MSPwiz has less than 100 registered MSPs signed up so far,” said Agrawal. “This is a classic two-sided marketplace, and it is currently a ghost town. They have a ‘chicken-and-egg’ problem – SMBs will not come if there is no choice, and MSPs will not join, or at least will not be found, if there are no SMBs.”

For the startup, the critical hurdle here will be execution and scale, said Agrawal. “The platform's utility is directly proportional to the number and quality of MSPs in its database. Their immediate challenge will be a rapid ramp-up of MSP acquisition to reach a critical mass that provides genuine choice to businesses nationwide. If they can solve this problem, this model addresses a clear and documented gap in the channel ecosystem.”